Is an exploding star to blame for a mass extinction on Earth 2.5 million years ago?

A supernova occurred about 160 light years away, 2.5 million years ago, and it might have permanently altered life on the planet at a DNA level.

May 22, 2018

New evidence suggests the existence of 'Planet Nine' somewhere beyond Pluto

The orbit of this planet, should it exist, will be about 10 to 20 thousand Earth years and it will be about 4 times the size of Earth and 10 times as dense.

May 22, 2018

Alien asteroid near Jupiter is first known outsider to travel through space to Solar System

A weird asteroid lives near Jupiter and shares its orbit, but spins in the opposite direction. It has traveled several millions of kilometres to end up inside the Solar System.

May 22, 2018

ISRO completes tests on GSAT-11, glitch-free satellite may be launched soon

ISRO's GSAT-11 is a communication satellite, said to be the "heaviest satellite ever." Weighing about 5,725 kilograms, the GSAT-11 is likely to blast off from the Guiana Space Centre in French Guiana. The cost of the mission has been pegged at around Rs 500 crore.

May 21, 2018

China's Magpie Bridge satellite will orbit 455,000 km from Earth to control future Moon robots

This is the first communications satellite that will operate so far from Earth and it is designed to help Chinese engineers control their robot which will explore the dark side of the Moon

May 21, 2018

China launches satellite to explore Moon's far side

Queqiao is expected to enter a halo orbit around the second Lagrangian (L2) point of the Earth-Moon system, about 455,000 km from the Earth. It will be the world's first communication satellite operating in that orbit. Monday's launch was the 275th mission of the Long March rocket series.

May 21, 2018

Strange laser beams being fired at Earth from Ant Nebula in deep space

A dying star part of a twin star system in the middle of the Ant Nebula has been ejecting lasers into the universe and to beams are coming at Earth.

May 20, 2018

NASA's exoplanet hunter takes first image of the cosmos as it swings by the Moon

TESS is a NASA mission that is designed to look for exoplanets and potentially life-bearing planets orbiting stars in the cosmos and it has just taken its first image.

May 20, 2018

Wrong axial tilt can freeze Earth-like planets even within the 'Goldilocks Zone'

Planets are believed to be hospitable if they are at a particular distance from their host star and thus able to hold liquid water, scientists have now found that a planet's tilt also plays a major role in allowing life to form on its surface.

May 18, 2018

China to compete with SpaceX by developing its own cheap, reusable rockets; launch by 2020

A state-owned space company in China is working on Long March 8, a rocket which they claim will have the takeoff and landing capability similar to SpaceX's Falcon 9.

May 17, 2018

Fastest growing black hole ever found eats a sun every 2 days

The black hole is 12 billion light years away and is unlikely to ever get near Earth. With a mass of about 20 billion suns, the black hole would have appeared 10 times brighter than the moon if it was located at the center of the Milky Way.

May 16, 2018

Elon Musk says Falcon 9 is now 'most reliable rocket ever built'

SpaceX is targeting one launch every two weeks using the Falcon 9 which now can go up to ten launches before needing any major refurbishment.

May 16, 2018

Jupiter's moon Europa could harbour life, hints water plumes shooting into space

After studying data over two decades old, scientists have now confirmed that Jupiter's moon Europa has water plumes as high as 100 miles off the surface, which shows a great deal of promise for future space missions.

May 15, 2018

Massive asteroid to brush past Earth: Watch closest encounter in 300 years

According to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, there is going to be a close encounter with an asteroid the size of New York's Statue of Liberty, as it skims past our planet on May 15.

May 15, 2018

ISRO ponders alternative propulsion tech, reusable launch vehicles

ISRO has a few lofty goals set for itself in the coming years – reducing the cost of space travel, improving manufacturing technology, building reusable rockets and vehicles, and nuclear propulsion are all things that India is looking seriously at.

May 13, 2018